The healer stood and faced Kratos. “She will be fine. I added a sedative to the injection, so she can get some rest.” He paused and gave the Raas a meaningful look. “And so can you.”
“Sedative?” I pushed myself back up on my elbows. I wanted to be outraged that the alien had drugged me, but I was already relaxing—an enticing oblivion not far from reach.
Focusing on the Raas, I saw that the cloth he’d wrapped around his waist had slipped down so that the deep V-cuts on either side of his corded stomach were exposed. A pulse of heat throbbed between my legs, and I let out a breathy sigh.
Both aliens swung their heads toward me.
“Perhaps I was mistaken, Raas,” the healer said, one eyebrow lifting.
I could have sworn I saw the corner of Kratos’ mouth twitch, but he only nodded once before the Vandar backed out of the room.
I blinked heavily as I let myself sink back onto the bed. “This isn’t fair. I don’t want to…”
His stance relaxed once the door had shut, and it was only the two of us. He sat next to me, tugging the fabric back over my leg. “I have told you I will not touch you before you heal.”
“So, it’s a promise?” My words were slurred, and he appeared fuzzy around the edges. I reached out one hand and took hold of something soft. That felt nice. I stroked it between my fingers until I heard the raider make a choked noise.
I glanced down. Crap. I was holding the tip of his tail, which even though wet, was like spun silk. His expression was tight, but he stood ramrod straight. I dropped his tail immediately, warmth rushing to my cheeks.
His jaw relaxed, but a vein still throbbed in the side of his neck. “You are mine to do with as I like, human. You gave yourself to me. I do not owe you a promise.” His voice rasped low before softening. “But I will give you one, just the same. A Raas does not break his word.”
“Raas Kratos,” I murmured, humming to myself. Why did I like the sound of his name so much? Why did it feel comforting to repeat it to myself like a mantra? Everything about the alien should have terrified me, but instead I felt pulled to him.
He studied me, his brows pressed together. “Yes, I am Raas. And you are mine.”
“I am your what?” My eyes were heavy as I fought to stay awake, but tears stung the backs of my eyelids. “Your war prize? Your whore?”
“No.” His voice was sharp.
I moved my head up and down sluggishly. “I guess a virgin can’t really be a whore, anyway.”
Even through the haze of the sedation, I could see the change on his face as he computed the word, his jaw clenching.
My chin quivered, although I didn’t know why I was suddenly on the verge of tears again. Why did I care so much if I disappointed him? “I guess I’m not what you expected, huh?”
My eyes fluttered closed, but I could still hear him.
“No, you are not, Raisa.”
“Astrid,” I whispered. “My name is Astrid.”
He brushed something down my cheek, and I suspected it was the velvety tip of his tail. “When you wake, Raisa, we will discover why you draw me to you like a carvoth to a flame, won’t we?”
I desperately wanted to stay awake, to ask what raisa meant and hear more of this warlord’s thoughts when he thought no one was listening. But the Vandar sedative worked quickly, and soon I’d slipped away from his gentle caress and into a deep sleep, my own humming the last sound I heard.
Chapter Eight
Kratos
All eyes turned toward me when I entered the command deck, heels clicked, then my warriors returned to their tasks. All but Corvak, who walked up to stand next to me and face the wide view of space stretching across the front of the command deck.
We stood together silently as the consoles hummed and our sensors emitted low beeps. Our speed was steady, and the floor vibrated from the throaty rumble of the engines. I was glad to be back on my command deck where the sounds and smells were familiar, and far away from the soft, sweet-smelling female who confused me so.
When she’d stroked my tail, I thought I would lose control, but I’d reminded myself that she did not know the tip of Vandar tails were so sensitive. If she’d known that stroking my tail was almost as arousing as stroking my cock, she would not have done it. I knew that, but it was hard to remember just how much she didn’t know about my kind. It was going to be very difficult to keep my promise, and I wondered—not for the first time—why I’d made it to her in the first place.
Even though he did not look at me, Corvak’s disapproval pulsed off him in waves. Of anyone, it would be my battle chief who would be the most threatened by my actions. And I’d always known that Corvak was a beast who attacked when threatened.
“No trace of the Zagrath in pursuit?” I asked before he could speak.
“None, Raas.” He cleared his throat. “They would not come at all, if we had destroyed that freighter.”
I knew he was right, but I did not like the reminder of my weakness. Although we were kin, I was still his Raas. I swiveled my gaze at him, watching a muscle twitch in the side of his face. “You question my judgment?”
“Never before, Raas.”
Heat threatened to suffuse my face. Never before.
“But now you challenge your Raas?” I heard the fury beneath my carefully modulated words, and watched his jaw drop slightly. He knew he’d gone too far.
Corvak turned to face me as bodies shifted around us, and heads turned with interest. “You know I would never challenge you. I have served under you for as long as you have commanded this horde.”
I clasped my hands behind my back, aware that my warriors were watching and hearing every word. “Maybe you think you know better now? Maybe you think me weak?”
“Never.” Corvak’s scarred face was earnest as he held my eyes. “You have killed more Zagrath than any Raas before you except for—“
“My father,” I finished for him, turning away. “But I have spilled enough enemy blood for you not to doubt my reasons, Corvak. If I spared that worthless freighter, I had my reasons. Ones I do not need to share with anyone, not even my battle chief.”
“Yes, Raas.” The heat had seeped out of his voice. “I did not know that sparing the humans was part of your strategy.”
“Sometimes it is important to confuse our enemy.” I knew our enemy was not the only one I had baffled with my actions, but I was in no mood to explain myself to my crew. Not when I myself did not fully understand why I did what I did.
“Of course, Raas.”
“Do you anticipate any more encounters on our way to the Carborian sector?” I asked, cutting off discussion of the earlier events.
“Long-range sensors show no enemy ships or outposts on our way.”
“Good.” I shifted my weight. “We are overdue to restock our rations and fuel stores.”
Corvak cleared his throat. “I would like to request a stop on Jaldon.”
My pulse quickened, then stuttered to a stop. Jaldon. One of the pleasure planets that welcomed Vandar raiders with open arms—and much more.
I immediately sensed a change in the energy of the command deck. This had already been discussed before my battle chief had broached it with me. Not surprising. We often stopped at Jaldon when we were on a supply run. I usually partook as eagerly as any of my warriors, enjoying the strong drinks and the easy females.